About a month ago I began working with my 3.5 y/o Arabian filly around her udder area. She has always been touchy (and squeally) about that particular area and I want to be able to handle her everywhere safely so I began by lightly scratching and sponging her to acclimate her to being cared for there. I noticed one evening that a clear fluid was dripping from an udder as I scratched her. I called several local vets the next morning and no one seems to know what would cause this sort of thing in a virgin mare. There are so stallions within a few miles of where my horse is stabled so no "accidents" could have possibly occurred.

She has no bag and is not sore or uncomfortable in anyway. She is not on lush grass and is within a normal weight range for her frame ( 14hh/750 lbs). She gets 4 lbs of 16% molasses free feed w/ 1 cup of black oil sunflower seed, 1 oz. of kelp meal, 1 oz. of mare minerals ( provided by my vet), 1/2 cup of corn oil and a dab of apple cider vinegar - all divided into 2 feedings and free feed timothy hay. She gives no indications of feeling unwell in anyway.

I checked her udders again this morning after several weeks of being careful not to pay too much attention to the area and I gave each a gentle squeeze and clear fluid shot out again. What is this stuff? Is it normal? Thanks for any help.

I haven't come across your problem in a virgin mare before but have seen it in mares previously bred but not in foal, near a foal or stallion and in a maiden goat! A friends mare had a sort of similar thing but she had given birth to a couple of foals but was not in foal and the last foal had been away from the mare for years. I think this mare actually got a bit of an udder, the vet suggested a high clover content in the diet could have been the cause as Katy has directed. I think the issue disappeared on it own, I don't know if this helps at all but just wanted you to know your filly is not the only horse to do this, as far as I can tell. Why do you feed the filly corn oil? I am just asking as our vet suggested feeding corn oil to my chap to try and help with his regular attacks of very mild tummy aches.

My 25 year old quarter horse mare bagged-up and produced a milky substance many times throughout her lifetime. You could actually milk her and it looked exactly like mild only a bit thinner. She was a virgin mare and was never bred until last summer. She foaled her first foal at the age of 24 without any problems whatsoever. She is still going strong and I am just now weaning the colt who is, of course, at this moment yelling for his Mom.

My horse is pastured in an 8 acre field that includes a bit of everything and is fed a senior feed/beet pulp with a little sweet feed. I also asked my vet if he'd seen this before, but he said no.

Bashirah has very minimal access to clover so I don't think that is causing the her issue. Interesting article, though. I am always amazed at how much I learn from this horse or because of having her. :)

The only other creature in the barn area with the horse ( excluding the horribly starved kitten that I picked up from the roadside two days ago) is her emu, who I think is a male, but getting in the right position to tell for sure would be sketchy, if not dangerous. He likes to kick a bit. The horse does herd the bird as the "lead" mare in their small herd of 2. She really keeps that bird in line. I wonder if she is thinking he's her baby or something? I'd never thought of that...Hmm.

I don't think that this is an actual problem because she isn't in pain and there is no sign of infection. I have talked to another vet who is a breeder as well and she said that mares usually have udder secretions but that sometimes people don't usually notice. I wondered about that because I am female, of breeding age and I don't have this problem ( thank goodness!). I guess this is another equine mystery that may or may not be solved.

Well, thanks for the replies, I guess I'll pick something else to worry over for a while... :)

Oops, I forgot to add that I feed corn oil to add to Bashirah's caloric intake without adding to the starches, as well as it hopefully lubricates her a bit. The sunflower seed gives her the most incredible gloss- I threw away my Show Sheen, she's only needs a quick rub with the chamois and she's sparkles in the sun now. The kelp meal provides micronutrients and mineral and supposedly helps the animal to use their feed better. It is high in iodine so I'm careful about how much she gets.

Neat. I was excited to see this old thread! I said to a trainer that I didn't realize the one sale mare had been bred- she said she hadn't. I was just grooming for them but noticed the fluid in her teets and got a shot out of each, so I guessed she was wrong about the mare's history. But the mare was stalled across from their stallion and there were multiple babies in the barn!

Our QH mare's only foal is now three but after seeing a few day old baby she was practically leaking.

I've spent over a year of my life lactating, so I'm really glad humans aren't as prone to this as horses seem to be!!!

My 6 year old, anglo-arab mare has had fluid that is easily milked from her most of her life. She has never been bred and hasn't had fresh clover since last fall, though our hay has some clover in it. We do have a stallion in the barn across from her.

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